As Attorney General of the United States, Thornburgh was regularly consulted for his opinion on legal issues and actions of the Department of Justice. He appeared frequently on TV news programs, provided information to the press at Department of Justice press conferences, and appeared before committees of both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. Some of the many topics here include, for example: savings and loans, white collar crime, proposed bills and laws, notable cases, Supreme Court cases, the war on drugs, violent crime, and Bush Administration policies. Of these, 81 are available here online. Those excluded are primarily from TV news programs for which we did not have permission. A notable exception are those from the "McNeil/Lehrer Newshour," from whom we kindly were granted permission for online presentation of transcripts.

The transcript files are arranged chronologically and occasionally contain correspondence and notes. The topics of the transcripts are all inclusive and provide excellent insight into the major legal issues during the time that Thornburgh served as Attorney General, 1988-1991. All DOJ press conferences and hearings have been made available. The occasions presented are, just for example: confirmation hearings, DOJ press conferences on a broad array of subjects, question and answer session regarding the United Nations Convention against drug trafficking, press briefings from foreign trips, U.S. Senate and House Judiciary Committee hearings, press conferences with Soviet Minister of Justice Yakovlev, news conferences with various DOJ and FBI persons, remarks and addresses, U.S./Mexico Binational Commission press conference, symposia, and memorial services. The spontaneous content of many of these transcripts indicates the unique and valuable content made available here.

Box 752

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1

Statement by President Reagan announcing the nomination of Richard L. Thornburgh to be Attorney General of the United States, and Thornburgh's remarks July 12, 1988